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Monday, July 5, 2010

Favorite Episodes: Gilmore Girls

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Well, readers, I have to admit that I'm coming to the end of my list of shows that I've seen every episode of. I have about five possibilities left (I think), so it's time to start thinking about a new Monday series. I did long-running shows and shows canceled before their time, then I dove into holiday favorites and favorite episodes. I'm taking open suggestions for new series of posts (I want to be able to do at least 10 posts in a series), and I've got a couple of ideas as well, so I'll probably put up a poll on the site in the next week or so (don't worry, RSS folks, I'll announce it) and we can vote.

Now, onward to Gilmore Girls. I initially avoided this show like the plague, as I was under the impression it was similar to Little Women in that there were four sisters or something. And at that point I didn't want to pick up a family-oriented show, LoL. At some point in my early years of college I discovered what the show really was about, and by my fourth year I was picking up a few of the DVD sets to catch up, as well as watching what I could live. I was on my honeymoon when the series finale came on, and was a little sad about that, but it wasn't the greatest finale ever or anything so no big deal. Still, the show had tons of excellent episodes (some if for no other reason than the sheer amount of pop culture references that Lorelai and Rory made!), so let's look at some.

Season 1: "The Lorelais' First Day at Chilton" (S01E02) In this classic, Lorelai doesn't have anything clean to wear so she dresses like a scrub to take Rory to her first day at Chilton, the big prep school. Unfortunately, Emily is there and makes Lorelai feel even worse about her appearance. Elsewhere, the kids make fun of Rory, and she quickly finds an enemy in Paris. [only clips seem to exist online]

Season 2: "Presenting Lorelai Gilmore" (S02E06) Christopher plays a major role when he needs to escort Rory when she publicly comes out to society. We see some pretty dresses and learn a little bit about the "coming out" process (between this and Donna's stint in the debutant circuit on Beverly Hills, 90210, I think I learned all I ever need to know, LoL). We also see an angry Richard as he gets phased out by his company. [only clips seem to exist online]

Season 3: "Happy Birthday, Baby!" (S03E18) Rory is doing a ton of stuff to celebrate Lorelai's birthday, but the best part is the biggest pizza ever. Lorelai is luckily preoccupied with the fact that Richard gives her $75,000... money he earned on an investment that he made when she was born. Lorelai uses the money to pay back Emily, but Emily freaks out at the idea that she'll once again become estranged without the Friday-night-dinner requirement. [only clips seem to exist online]

Season 4: "The Lorelais' First Day at Yale" (S04E02) Rory starts college. Lorelai gets her a nice mattress, but this means they have to ditch the old one. Rory's roommates are Paris, a jock, and a 16-year-old with no social skills. Rory starts Orientation while Lorelai goes out to get Rory "better stuff," based on the cool stuff other kids have. Later on, Rory freaks out and Lorelai turns around and comes back, and they order in from all the nearby places. Lorelai invites all the neighbors to come and try out the goods, and Rory makes friends. The clips online are pretty poor, but here's one from Orientation:

Season 5: "You Jump, I Jump, Jack" (S05E07) Rory's working on a scoop for the paper, where she tries to uncover a secret society and its traditions at Yale. Logan shows her the rituals, and she is able to participate in some of the neat stuff. Meanwhile, Emily hates Luke, and Richard thinks that Luke should franchise his diner. Again, no great clips, but here's one with a ritual:

Season 6: "A Vineyard Valentine" (S06E15) Luke and Lorelai drive over to spend Valentine's Day weekend with Rory and Logan at the Huntzbergers' place in Martha's Vineyard. They don't have the right clothes for the occasion, and so Luke especially has to wear some random stuff. Rory and Logan cook up a feast, but overall there is a lot of awkwardness. Logan gives Luke a gift to give to Lorelai, so as not to show him up with his gift to Rory. Mr. Huntzberger manages to ruin the end of the mini-vacation when he demands Logan take off immediately for a business trip. [no good clips online]

Season 7: "I am Kayak, Hear Me Roar" (S07E15) Rory plans a Gilmore-style birthday for Logan, so he can see that some people celebrate in a much different way than the Huntzberger family. Logan doesn't really get it, tho. Plus, he's having big troubles with his company over some patents. Meanwhile, Lorelai has been stalling to tell Emily about what happened between her and Christopher, but when she does, she's surprised at how supportive Emily is. [no good clips online]

1 comment:

The Valentine episode was perfect for me because1-it's Gilmore Girls2-Valentine's Day is my birthday and the episode actually aired on that day.3-Martha's Vineyard is my favorite place and I've been going there all my life.All in all it was a perfect birthday gift for me :)